Imperial College London (03/20/21) O'Hare, Ryan

Researchers at Imperial College London (ICL) and Estonia's University of Tartu have proposed a ticketing model to help crowds return safely to live events while reducing the risk of COVID-19 transmission. The proposal involves organizers administering a pre-event testing and surveillance scheme for admission, integrated with predictive risk modeling to alert ticket holders and public health authorities of the risk of attendance. "Mass events, such as the Olympics, routinely use live streamed testing control officers for anti-doping measures and so the workforce and the technology is already in place to facilitate these processes," said ICL researcher Matthew Harris. The authors explained that following an event's announcement, the customer buys a ticket whose validity is only confirmed after they complete a questionnaire and a coronavirus test at home shortly beforehand. The test would be videoed or live-streamed to a professionally trained testing control officer, who would evaluate the holder's identity and test validity. Holders with a negative test would receive a scannable certificate to gain entry to the event, and comply with any measures put in place by organizers for distancing, mask-wearing and safe hygiene practices. Those who test positive would be automatically refunded the full ticket price, their ticket would become invalid, and a notification of the positive test would be provided to public health authorities. "Because this model allows for events to be held at full capacity, it potentially meets the needs of industry, consumers, the health system and public health and could also be relevant to other mass events including educational conferences and sports events," Harris suggested.

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